Hello to all! My name is Julia and I am one of the new Fossil Lab Interns. Blogging is a bit new to me, seeing as how this is my first time doing it, but I’ll try my best to be clear, and not boring. I became involved with Project Exploration a while ago, actually, probably back in the summer after my freshman year of high school, which to my memory was 2009. Since then, it has been a thrill ride as I participated in the Dinosaur Giants program for two years. As junior year neared end, I wanted to continue my involvement with Project Exploration and the Fossil Lab Internship allowed me to expand on my past experience, giving me a position as an intern. Besides learning so many new things as both a freshman and a sophomore participating in “Dino” Giants, I also met many great friends that I still keep, and thus I had no doubt that participation in the Fossil Lab Internship would result in the similarly interesting and new connections with other people all around Chicago. I know that the Fossil Lab Internship will be a great opportunity for me, especially because much of my interest lies in science and science related things. I love detailed work in labs, microscopes, research projects, etc., and being able to do all of these things all throughout the summer will be awesome! I think that this experience will further my overall intrigue in science and working in labs doing research, which would be useful tools to have to my disposal in college as I pursue a career in the field.

Originally, I am from Ukraine. I was born and raised there, until the age of 9, at which point I came to the US to go to school. A fun fact about me is that I speak Ukrainian, Russian and English fluently, but I also understand Polish and have been taking Spanish for the past three years in school. International study and diplomacy is also one of the many things that interest me besides science.

There are so many memories to choose from when it comes to thinking about Dino Giants and Project Exploration in general. I think the best one would be… Well, it isn’t really a memory but it became an everyday occurrence since it happened. I met so many really interesting and fun people, one of which was Iriana Balbian. Everyday, she and I would go to lunch and talk with all of the other friends we’ve made. I think that’s one of the greatest things about Project Exploration: it connects people and students together through shared passions and develops lasting friendships.